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284 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
one of the ministers of the Tolbooth Church, Edinburgh, and Secretary to
the Society in Scotland for Propagating Christian Knowledge $-and on
the 23d, “At Edinburgh, Sir James Colquhoun of Luss, Bart., Sheriffdepute
of Dumbartonshire.”
He subsequently
occupied a house connected with the hall of the Society to which he
was secretary (formerly Baron Maule’s residence), at the Netherbow, and afterwards
used by the Messrs. Craig as a hat manufactory.
Dr. Kemp resided for several years in Ramsay Garden, Castle Hill.
No. CXVI.
THE MOST NOBLE THE MARQUIS OF GRAHAM,
AND
THE RIGHT HON. THE EARL OF BUCHAN.
THIS Print refers to the close of the war in 1782, when the fear of invasion
from the menacing attitude of the French nation created so much unnecessary
alarm. At this period the above-mentioned noblemen zealously came forward
to rouse the spirit of their countrymen. They are represented as they appeared
in the “ garb of old Gaul,” beating up for a volunteer body called the Caledonian
Band.’ Several meetings had been held, and a vast number of citizens’
names enrolled ; the Marquis had also been elected colonel, and the Earl lieutenant-
colonel, besides the appointment of a number of inferior officers ; but
before the commissions arrived from his Majesty, the preliminaries of peace had
been signed. The Caledonian Band, like its prototype, the Edinburgh Defensive
Band, was thereafter converted into a body of freemasons-of which the
Earl of Buchan was made master, and afterwards the Hon. Archibald Fraser of
Lovat, whose father was beheaded in 1746.
Perhaps few local matters ever excited greater interest in Edinburgh than the probable issue of
this unhappy law-suit. Dr. Kemp was characterised as a second Dr. Cantwell by one party, and as
the most injured man breathing by the other. Even the reality of his death became matter of dispute
; for it was affirmed1and believed by not a few of his adversaries, that his demise was a fiction,
got up for the purpose of stifling investigation ; and it was positively asserted, that, more than a
year afterwards, he had been seen in Holland in the very best health and spirits. That this rumour,
however, was unfounded, may be presumed from the fact, which wm well known, of his having been
struck with palsy some time prior to his death. Therefore, admitting the fiction of his demise, and
that he was seen in Holland in the best heaZth and sphits, it falls to be shown by what means such
a miraculous recovery had been effected. But the point is, we think, set at rest by direct testimony ;
for we are informed by a friend that the late Mr. Charles Watson, undertaker, father of Dr. Watson
of Burntisland, who was one of Dr. Kemp’s elders, and a person whose word may be relied on,
declared to him that he assisted in putting Dr. Kemp’s body into the coffin, and in screwing down
the top of it.
This corps was drilled by Mr. John Lamond, as adjutant, brother of the Dean of Guild of
Edinburgh.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. one of the ministers of the Tolbooth Church, Edinburgh, and Secretary to the Society ...

Book 8 p. 398
(Score 0.86)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 91
The seconds think it proper to add, that both parties behaved with the utmost
coolness and intrepidity.
“ RAWDON.
‘ I WINCHILSEA
‘‘ Tuesday evening, May 26th.”
It is reported that her Majesty the Queen, who might have been supposed
inclined to resent an attempt upon the life of her son, so far from appearing to
do so, politely received the Colonel shortly afterwards at the Spanish ambassador’s
gala.
On the 28th Colonel Lennox found it necessary to solicit his Royal Highness,
as Colonel of the Coldstream Guards, to permit a call of the officers to
colisider of “ certain propositions touching his conduct and situation,” which the
Duke at once agreed to. The opinion of this military convention was as
follows :-“ It is the opinion of his Majesty’s Coldstream Regiment of Guards,
that Colonel Lennox, subsequent to the 15th instant, has behaved with courage,
but from the peculiarity of the circumstances, not with judgment.”
In consequence of this ambiguous decision, the Colonel and his friends
deemed it proper for him to leave the Guards. He, accordingly, on the 16th of
June, exchanged with Lord Strathaven of the 35th, which regiment was then
stationed in Edinburgh Castle ; previous to joining, however, Colonel Lennox
had occasion to fight another duel, a pamphlet having been published by one
Theophilus Swift, Esq., throwing reflections on the character of the Colonel.
The latter immediately called on Mr. Swift ; a meeting was the consequence, on
the morning of the 3d July, in a field near to the Uxbridge road-Mr. Swift
attended by Sir William Brown, and Colonel Lennox by Colonel Phipps. The
principals took their stations at the distance of ten paces, when Lennox, being
the injured party, was allowed to fire first. The ball took effect in the body of
Rlr. Swift,’ whose pistol went off without injury. Mr. Swift soon recovered
from the effects of the wound.
Colonel Lennox at length arrived in Edinburgh on the 21st of the month.
In the evening the Castle was illuminated in honour of his joining the regiment,
on which occasion he gave “ an excellent entertainment to the officers, and ten
guineas to the privates, to drink his health,” the officers also giving ten guineas
for the same purpose. Shortly after, he visited Gordon Castle, where he was
married to Lady Charlotte, eldest daughter of the Duke of Gordon, and niece
to the celebrated Lady Wallace.
About this time the Incorporation of Goldsmiths in Edinburgh made the
Colonel an honorary member of their body, and presented him with the free-
’ This gentleman’s father was nearly related to the celebrated Dean Swift, a life of whom he
published. After the Colonel’s succession to the Dukedom, and his appointment to the Lieutenancy
of Irelaud, in 1807, it occurred that &. Swift was one of the party at a ball given at Dublin Castle.
On being presented to the royal depute, Mr. Swift humorously remarked, “ This is a Werent ball
from that your Highness favoured me with the last time we met.”

... SKETCHES. 91 The seconds think it proper to add, that both parties behaved with the utmost coolness ...

Book 8 p. 129
(Score 0.85)

&rnbers Street.] INDUSTRIAL MUSEUM. 275
metalhrgy and constructive materials, for ceramic
.and vitreous manufactures, the decorative arts,
guise of various animals, seek to aid 0; hinder its ' ascent.
textile manufactures, food, education, chemistry,
materia medica, photography, &c.
The whole floor is covered with articles illustrative
of the arts of construction, such as products
.of the clay-fields, fire and brick clays, and terra-
-cottas. Cements and artificial stones stand next
in order, followed by illustrations of the mode of
quarrying real stone ; adjoining these are stones
dressed for building purposes, and others carved
for ornamental uses.
Oriental stone carving is illustrated by a set of
magnificent plaster casts from one of the- most
famous gates of Delhi, made by order of the
Indian Government. The sanitary appliances used
in building are likewise exhibited here ; also slate
.and its uses, with materials for surface decorations,
.and woods for house timber and furniture.
Among the more prominent objects are large
.models of Scottish lighthouses, presented by the
Commissioners of Northern Lights, of St. Peter's at
Rome, St Paul's at London, and the Bourse in
Berlin, together with a singularly elegant carton-
.pierre ceiling ornament, and finely designed mantelpiece,
that were originally prepared for Montagu
House.
In the centre of the hall are some beautiful
.specimens of large guns and breechloading fieldpieces,
with balls and shells, and a fine model of
-the bridge over the Beulah in Westmoreland.
A hall devoted to the exhibition of flint and clay
products, and illustrations of glass and pottery, is
in the angle behind the great and east saloons.
'The art Potteries of Lambeth are here represented
by beautiful vases and plaques, and other articles
in the style of old Flemish stoneware. There are
.also fine examples of the Frenchfuiencr, by Deck
-of Paris, including a splendid dish painted by
Anker, and very interesting samples of Persian
-pottery as old as t b fourteenth century.
There is a magnificent collection of Venetian
.glass, comprising nearly 400 pieces, made by the
Abbot Zanetti of Murano, in Lombardy; while
modern mosaic work is exemplified by a beautiful
,reredos by Salviati, representing the Last Supper.
The beauty of ancient tile work is here exhibited
in some exquisite fragments from Constantinople,
These formed, originally, part of the
.several decorations of the mosque of Broussa, in
Anatolia, which was destroyed by an earthquake.
In rich blue on a white ground they display a
variety of curious conceptions, one of which represents
the human soul shooting aloft as a tall
=cypress tree, while good and evil spirits, under the
Near these are placed, first, illustrations of colliery
work, then of metallurgical operations, and lastly,
the manufacture of metals. The first, or lower
gallery of this hall, contains specimens of the arts
in connection with clothing, and the textile fabrics
generally and their processes ; wood, silk, cotton,
hemp, linen, jute, felt, silk, and straw-hat making,
leather, fur, and also manufactures from bone, ivory,
horn, tortoise-shell, feathers, hair-gut, gutta-percha,
india-rubber, &c. ; and the upper gallery contains
the collection illustrative of chemistry, the chemical
arts, materia medica, and philosophical instruments.
The department of machinery contains a speci
men, presented by the inventor. of Lister's wool
combing machine, which, by providing the means
of combing long wools mechanically, effected an
enormous change in the worsted trade of Yorkshire.
*
In the front of the east wing is the lecture
room, having accommodation for 800 sitters
Above it is a large apartment, seventy feet in
length by fifty broad, containing a fine display of
miner'als and fossils. One of the most interesting
features in this department is the large and valuable
collection of fossils which belonged to Hugh
Miller.
The ethnological specimens are ranged in hahdsome
cases around the walls. The natural his.
tor). hall contains on its ground floor a general
collection of mammalia, including a complete
grouping of British animals. The first gallery
contains an ample collection of birds and shells,
&c; the upper gallery, reptiles and fishes. In
the hall is suspended the skeleton of a whale
seventy-nine feet in length.
On the north side of Chambers Street is the new
Watt Institution and School of Arts, erected in
lieu of that of which we have already given a history
in Adam Square. (VoL I., pp. 379, 380.) It was
erected in 1872-3 from designs by David Rhind,
and is two storeys in height, with a pavilion at
its west end, and above its entrance porch the
handsome statue of James Watt which stood in
the demolished square.
Beside this institution stands the Phrenological
Museum, on the north side, forming a conjoint
building With it, and containing a carefully assorted
collection of human skulls some of them being of
great antiquity. It was formerly in Surgeon Square,
High School Yard.
The new Free Tron Church stands here, nearly
Sec "Great Industries of Great Britain." VoL I., pp. 107-8;
II., b

... Street.] INDUSTRIAL MUSEUM. 275 metalhrgy and constructive materials, for ceramic .and vitreous ...

Book 4 p. 275
(Score 0.85)

349 Hope Pukl ?THE DOUGLAS CAUSE.?
THE BURGH LOCH.. (Aftw a Plwtagrajh o f t h OnginaZ, bypermission of thc M e m k t Company of Edidu&.l
CHAPTER XLI.
HOPE PARK END.
?The Douglas Cause,? or Story of Lady Jane Douglas-Stewart-Hugh Lord Semplc-? The Chevalier?-The Archers? Hall-Royal Company
of Archers formed-Their Tacobitism-Their Colours-hrlv Parades-Constitution and Admission-Their Hall built-Mwrs. Nelsond
Establishment-Thomas Nelson.
HOPE PARK END is the name of a somewhat humble
cluster of unpretending houses which sprang up at
the east end of the Meadows ; but the actual villa
latterly called Hope Park was built on the south
bank of the former loch, ?immediately eastward of
the Meadow Cage,? as it is described in the prints
of 1822. In character Hope Park End has been
improved by the erection of Hope Park Crescent
and Terrace, with the U. P. church in their
vicinity; but when its only adjuncts were the
Burgh Loch Brewery, the dingy edifices known as
Gifford Park, and an old house of the sixteenth
century, pulled down by the Messrs. Nelson, it was a
somewhat sombre locality. Another old house near
the Archers? Hall showed on the lintel of its round
turnpike stair the date 1704, and the initials AB
-J.L. ; but in which old mansion in this quarter
the celebrated and unfortunate Lady Jane Douglas-
Stewart resided we have no means of ascertaining,
or whether before or after she occupied z garret
in the East Cross Causeway, and only know from
her letters that she lived here during a portion of
the time (1753) when her long vexed case was disputed
in Scotland and in England.
Having referred to this case so often, it is
necessary, even for Edinburgh readers, to say
something of what it was-one in which the famous
toady Boswell, though little inclined to exaggeration,
is reported by Sir Walter Scott to have been so
ardent a partisan that he headed a mob which
smashed the windows of the adverse judges of the
Court of Session, when, ?? For Douglas or Hamilton?
? was the question men asked each other in
the streets, at night, and swords instantly drawn
if opinions were hostile j for ? the Douglas cause,?
as Scott says, ?shook the security of birthright in
Scotland, and was a cause which, had it happened
before the Union, when there was no appeal to a

... Hope Pukl ?THE DOUGLAS CAUSE.? THE BURGH LOCH.. (Aftw a Plwtagrajh o f t h OnginaZ, bypermission of thc M e m ...

Book 4 p. 349
(Score 0.84)

82 EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT.
One feature in these modern dwellings for the people is specially notable
and rare, so far as Edinburgh is concerned. They are selfcontained-each
family having a separate entrance. The localities of the buikiings are Stockbridge,
Norton Place, Dalry Road, Hawthorne Bank, Edinburgh ; Henderson
Road, and Restalrig, Leith. The houses are chiefly the property of the
occupants, and have been acquired by the simple and easy process of paying
a moderate rental. Since this movement was commenced, the earnest attention
of social reformers has been largely directed to the truth that thousands
of workmen and their families are dragging out a miserable existence in
abodes where comfort and refinement are unattainable. Small, without pre
perly separated apartments, badly lighted, and indifferently ventilated, their
internal arrangements obstruct and discourage the pursuit of knowledge, and
mar all domestic and intellectual enjoyment.
No notice of the beneficial change which has taken place in Edinburgh
would be complete without some recognition of the scheme initiated during
the Lord-Provostship of Mr. William Chambers for the removal of decayed
buildings and the erection on their sites of houses containing all the modem
requirements attainable under existing conditions.
Notwithstanding all that has been done, there is still a wide field for
exteaded effort. All honour is due to the Peabodys, the model mill-owners,
and the civic corporations who have from their own resources, or aided by
the Skte, done so much ta wipe out the blacked stain on modem civilisation,
and whose splendid efforts are a monument of enlightened philanthropy.
But such generous and Wisely directed action is and must ever be of rare
occurrence and partial application. Beautiful and beneficial in itself, it can
only affect a small portim of the vast wage-receiving class, and cannot be
reduced to a self-acting system dependent upon the will and ability of a
limited class ; it must always be fitful and uncertain. What we want is some
simple agency, easily understbd, tvithin the reach of all, and of universal
application ; and this we have in the principle of combined action as illustrated
by the Edinburgh movement. It has been put to the test of practical experience;
and in Glasgow and many English towns the example is being
followed with the most beneficent results.

... EDINBURGH PAST AND PRESENT. One feature in these modern dwellings for the people is specially notable and ...

Book 11 p. 131
(Score 0.84)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 29
his career. He soon became one of the most popular men of his day in the
city-esteemed for the generosity and benevolence of his disposition, respected
for his worth, and admired for his genius and talents.
Amongst the innumerable schemes for the benefit of the destitute, and of
suffering humanity in all its forms of misery, which this excellent man either
suggested or promoted, the most conspicuous was the establishment of a fund
for the widows of the clergy of the Church of Scotland ; an institution which
owes its existence chiefly to his benevolence, and its admirable system to his
singular powers of arithmetical calculation, a department of intellectual labour
in which he greatly excelled.
With all his other popular qualities, Dr. Webster possessed a great degree
of firmness and intrepidity of character, of which he exhibited a very striking
instance when the rebels were in possession of Edinburgh. At that crisis, when
most other men of his political sentiments and notoriety would have sought
safety in silence or retirement, he, boldly mounted his pulpit, and employed his
eloquence in denouncing the cause of the Chevalier, and in urging his hearers to
retain their fidelity to the House of Hanover.
Nor was his genius, sound judgment, and excellent taste, recognised only in
matters connected with his clerical capacity. They were so well known, and so
highly appreciated, that he was uniformly consulted by the magistrates of Edinburgh
in all public undertakings.
Dr. Webster was married to Miss Mary Erskine, a young lady of fortune,
daughter of Colonel John Erskine (brother of Sir Charles Erskine of Alva,
Bart.), by Euphemia, daughter of William Cochrane, Esq., of Ochiltree. She
was nearly related to the family of Dundonald, and was courted by some of
the first Peers of the realm. This connexion originated in a somewhat curious
manner, During his residence at Culross, Mr. Webster was employed by
a friend to procure for him the good graces of Miss Erskine, who then
resided at Valleyfield, in the neighbourhood. This duty he faithfully performed,
and urged his friend‘s suit with all the eloquence he was master of, but
to no purpose. At length, wearied with his importunities in the cause of
another, and at the same time prepossessed by his own figure and accomplishments,
both of which were eminently attractive, Miss Erskine plumply
remarked to him, ‘I You would come better speed, Sandy, if you would speak
for yourself;” and on this hint Mr. Webster did indeed speak, and to such
purpose, that they were shortly afterwards married.
This union, though thus brought about by a circumstance somewhat out of
rule on the lady’s part, was a happy one-Dr. Webster’s affection for his wife
never suffering the slightest abatement of that ardour so forcibly expressed in
the following stanza, addressed to her soon after their marriage :-
“ When I see thee I love thee, but hearing adore,
I wonder, and think you a woman no more,
Till, mad with admiring, I cannot contain,
And, kissing those lips, find you woman again.” I

... SKETCHES. 29 his career. He soon became one of the most popular men of his day in the city-esteemed ...

Book 8 p. 38
(Score 0.84)

336 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [North Bridge.
from somewhere about Coltbridge, to fill, and run
through the North Loch, which would be of great
advantage to the convenience, beauty, cleanliness,
and healthiness of the town.? ,
In the next paragraph this far-seeing nobleman
suggests the canal between the Forth and Clyde ;
but all that he projected for Edinburgh, by means
of his bridges, has. been accomplished to the full,
and more than he could ever have dreamt of
I in 1763, and a proper foundation sought for the
erection, which, however, is only indicated by
two dotted parallel lines in Edgar?s plan of the
city, dated 1765, which ?shew ye road along ye
intended bridge,? which was always spoken of as
simply a new way to Leith.
The first stone was deposited on? the 1st of
October, 1763, and Kincaid relates that in 1794
?some people very lately, if not yet alive, have posi-
PALACE OF MARY OF GUISE, CASTLE HlLL. (Fmm a Drawing6y W. B. Scotf).
The North Bridge, as a preliminary to the
formation of the New Town, was first planned by
Sir William Bruce of Kinross, architect to Charles
II., and his design ? is supposed to be now lying
in the Exchequer,? wrote Kincaid in 1794; but
another plan would seem to have been prepared
in 1752, yet no steps were taken for furthering the
execution of it till 1759, when the magistrates
applied for a Bill to extend the royalty over the
ground on which the New Town stands, but were
defeated by the vigorous opposition of the landholders
of the county.
.After four years? delay the city was obliged to
set about building the bridge without having any
Bill for it. , By the patriotic exertions of Provost
Drummond a portion of the loch was drained
tively asserted that Provost Drummond declared
to them that he only began to execute what the
Duke, afterwards James VII., proposed.?
This auspicious event was conducted with all
the pomp and ceremony the city at that time
afforded. George Drummond, the Lord Provost,
was appointed, as being the only former Grand-
Master present to act in this position, in the absence
of the then Grand-Master, the Earl of Elgin, The
various lodges of the Freemasons assembled in
the Parliament House at two in the afternoon;
from thence, escorted by the City Guard acd
two companies of militia, they marched three
abreast, with all their insignia, the junior lodges
going first, down Leith Wynd, from the foot of
which they turned westward along the north bank

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [North Bridge. from somewhere about Coltbridge, to fill, and run through the North ...

Book 2 p. 336
(Score 0.84)

41+ BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
various charitable institutions of this city; but he latterly began to concentrate
his exertions upon a single object of this kind. In 1818, a Parliamentary
Commission having been appointed to inquire into the state of education
throughout the United Kingdom, the chairman (Lord Brougham) requested the
countenance and aid of the General Assembly in obtaining returns from the
parochial clergy of Scotland. This was readily acceded to ; and, as convener
of the committee nominated by the Assembly, Dr. Baird took an active part
in furthering the object of the Commission. Deeply impressed with the statements
set forth in the returns, which were in the first instance forwarded to the
Principal, and by him transmitted to Lord Brougham, he was led to that enterprise
for the education of the Highlanders with which his name will ever be
most honourably associated. In 1824 he proposed to the General Assembly
a scheme for establishing schools in the Highlands, to be maintained on such
funds as the Church might raise by means of parochial collections and otherwise,
and to be superintended by a Committee of the General Assembly. The
project was well received, and a great and flourishing institution has been the
consequence. The General Assembly’s Education Committee has at present
an income of about 23000 per annum, with about 210,000 of capital, and an
establishment of more than one hundred schools, giving education to upwards
of, eight thousand children. Much of the success of this scheme depended on
the co-operation of heritors, in furnishing certain requisites of accommodation
to the schoolmasters ; and Dr. Baird zealously exerted himself to secure that
co-operation by means of frequent personal intercourse. It was with this view
he undertook several laborious journeys to the remotest parts of the Highlands
and Islands, at a very advanced period of life ; and the appearance of the venerable
Principal among their native hills and vales, on such a mission of benevolence,
will ever be remembered by the present generation of Highlanders,
and will not pass unrecorded to the next.
The Principal latterly retired in a great measure from the more active cares
and engagements of life ; and valued, as a good man naturally does, the privilege
of spending his later days among the remembered scenes of his boyhood:
connecting the present with the past in that manner of pleasing retrospect which
always argues a well-spent interval.
“ The child is father of the man ;
And I could wish my days to be
Bound each to each by natural piety.”
His clerical career was on the whole eminently prosperous ; and he repaid
the favours of his fortune by a character of high respectability, and by some
distinguished contributions to the public good-his chief exertions taking their
direction from the benevolence of his disposition. Among the class of practical
philanthropists, he occupied a place scarcely inferior to that of any other
individual of his time.
This was at Manuel, in the neighbourhood of Linlithgow, whem‘he chiefly resided

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. various charitable institutions of this city; but he latterly began to concentrate his ...

Book 9 p. 553
(Score 0.84)

and made the ornate edifice we find it now, with
?oriel windows and clustering turrets. He was
author of ?The Wolf of Badenoch,? ?The History of
the Morayshire Floods,? a ?Journal of the Queen?s
Visit to Scotland in 1842,? &c He was the lineal
.representative of the Lauders of Lauder Tower and
the Bass, and of the Dicks of Braid and Grange,
and died in 1848.
Near the Grange House is the spacious and
ornamental cemetery of the same name, bordered
on the east by a narrow path, once lined by dense
hedge-rows, which led from the Grange House to the
Meadows, and was long known as the Lovers? Loan.
This celebrated burying-ground contains the ashes of
Drs. Chalmers,Lee,and Guthne; Sir Andrew Agnew
of Lochnaw, Sir Thomas Dick Lauder, Sir Hope
? Grant of Kilgraston, the well-known Indian general
and cavalry officer ; Hugh Miller, Scotland?s most
eminent geologist ; the second Lord Dunfermline,
and a host of other distinguished Scotsmen.
CHAPTER V.
THE DISTRICT OF NEWINGTON.
The Causewayside-Summerhall-Clerk Street Chapel and other Churches-Literary Institute-Mayfield Loan-Old Houses-Free Church-
The Powbum-Female Blind Asylum-Chapel of St. John the Baptist-Dominican Convent at the Sciennes-Sciennes Hill House-Scott
and Burns meet-New Trades Maiden Hospital-Hospital for Incurables-Prestonfield House-The Hamiltons and Dick-Cunninghams-
Cemetery at Echo Bank-The Lands of Camemn-Craigmillar-Dexription of the Castle-James V., Queen Mary, and Darnley, resident
there-Queen Mary?s Tree-The Prestons and Gilmours-Peffer Mill House.
In the Grange Road is the Chalmers Memorial
Free Church, built in 1866, after designs by
Patrick Wilson at a cost of .&6,000. It is a
cruciform edifice, in the geometric Gothic style.
In Kilgraston goad is the Robertson Memorial
Established Church, built in 187 I, after designs
by Robert Morham, at a cost of more than L6,ooo.
It is also a handsome cruciform edifice in the
Gothic style, with a spire 156 feet high.
In every direction around these spots spread
miles of handsome villas in every style of architecture,
with plate glass oriels, and ornate railings,
surrounded by clustering trees, extensive gardens ,
and lawns, beautiful shrubberies - in summer,
rich with fruit and lovely flowers-the long lines
of road intersected by tramway rails and crowded
by omnibuses.
Such is now the Burghmuir of James 111.-the
Drumsheugh Forest of David I. and of remoter , times.
WHEN the population of Edinburgh,? says Sir
Walter Scott, ?appeared first disposed to burst
from the walls within which it had been so long
confined, it seemed natural to suppose that the
tide would have extended to the south side of
Edinbugh, and that the New Town would have
occupied the extensive plain on the south side
of the College.? The natural advantage pointed
out so early by Sir Walter has been eventually embraced,
and the results are the populous suburban
districts we have been describing, covered with
streets and villas, and Newington, which now extends
from the Sciennes and Preston Street nearly
to the hill crowned by the ancient castle of Craigmillar.
In the Valuation Roll for 1814 the district is
described as the ?Lands of Newington, part of the
Old and New Burrowmuir.?
The year 1800 saw the whole locality open and
arable fields, save where stood the old houses of - Mayfield at the Mayfield Loan, a few cottages at
Echo Bank, and others at the Powbum. In those
days the London mails proceeded from the town
by the East Cross Causeway; but as time went
on, Newington House was erected, then a villa
or two : among the latter, one still extant neqr the
corner of West Preston Street, was the residence
of William Blackwood the publisher, and founder
of the firm and magazine.
In the Causewayside, which leads direct from
the Sciennes to the Powburn, were many old and
massive mansions (the residences of wealthy citizens),
that stood back from the roadway, within ?
double gates and avenues of trees. Some of these
edifices yet remain, but they are of no note, and are
now the abodes of the poor.
Broadstairs House, in the Causewayside, a
massive, picturesque building, demolished to make
room for Mr. T. C. Jack?s printing and publishing
establishment, was built by the doctor of James IV.
or V., and remained in possession of the family till
the end of last century- One half of the edifice
was known as Broadstairs House, and the other
half as Wormwood Hall. Mr. Jack bought the

... made the ornate edifice we find it now, with ?oriel windows and clustering turrets. He was author of ?The ...

Book 5 p. 50
(Score 0.84)

Parliament Close.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE PARLIAMENT CLOSE.
Probable Extinction of the Court of Session-Memorabilia of the Parliament Close and SquartGoldsmiths of the Olden Time-George Henot-
His Workshq-His Interview with James VI.-Peter Williamson?s Tavern-Royal Exchange-Statue of Charles 11.-Bank of Scotland-
The Fire of 17oo-The Work of Restoration-John Row?s Coffee-house-John?s Coffee-house-Sylvester Otway-Sir W. Forber?s Bank-
Si Walter Scott?s Eulogy on Si W i U i Forks-John Kay?s Print-shop-The Parliment Stairs- James Sibbald-A Libel CascFire
in June, 1824-Dr. Archibald Pitcairn-The ? Greping Ofice?-Painting of King Charles?s Statue White-Seal of Amauld Larnmius.
A CHANGE has come over the scene of their
labours and the system of. the law which these
d d lords could never have conceived possiblewe
mean the system that is gradually extending in
Scotland, of decentralising the legal business of the
country-a system which stands out in strong con-
,trast to the mode of judicial centralisation now
prevailing in England. The Scottish county
courts have a jurisdiction almost co-extensive
with that of the Supreme Court, while those of
England have a jurisdiction (without consent of
parties) to questions only of value. This gives
them an overwhelming amount of business, while
the supreme courts of Scotland are starved by the
ipferior competing with them in every kind of litigation.
Thus the Court of Session is gradually
dwindling away, by the active competition of the
provincial courts, and the legal school becomes
every day more defective for lack of legal practice.
The ultimate purpose, or end, of this system
will, undoubtedly, lead to the disappearance of the
Court of Session, or its amalgamation with the
supreme courts in London will become an object
of easy accomplishment ; and then the school from
whence the Scottish advocates and judges come,
being non-existent, the assimilation of the Scottish
county courts to those of England, and the sweep
-ing away of the whole legal business of the country
to London, must eventually follow, with, perhaps,
the entire subjection of Scotland to the English
courts of law.
A description of the Parliament Close is given in
the second volume of ?? Peter?s Letters to his Kinsfolk,?
before the great fire of 1824 :-
?The courts of justice with which all these
eminent men are so closely connected are placed
in and about the same range of buildings which
in former times were set apart for the accommodation
of the Parliament of Scotland. The main
approach to these buildings lies through a small
.oblong square, which from this circumstance takes
the name of fhcParlianient Close. On two sides
this close is surrounded by houses of the same
gigantic kind of elevation, and in these, of old,
were lodged a great proportion of the dignitaries
and principal practitioners of the adjacent Courts.
At present, however (181g), they are dedicated,
like most of the houses in the same quarter of the
city, to the accommodation of tradespeople and
inferior persons attached to the courts of law.
. . . . The southern side of the square and a
small portion of the eastern are filled with venerable
Gothic buildings, which for many generations
have been dedicated to the accommodation
of the courts of law, but which are now shut out
from the eye of the public by a very ill-conceived
and tasteless front-work, of modern device, including
a sufficient allowance of staring square
windows, Ionic pillars, and pilasters. What beauty
the front of the structure may have possessed in
its original state I have no means of ascertaining ;
but Mr. Wastle (J. G. Lockhart) sighs every time
we pass through the close, as pathetically as could
be wished, ?over the glory that hath departed.?
The old Parliament House, the front of which
has been destroyed and concealed by the arcaded
and pillared facade referred to, we have already
described. The old Goldsmiths? Hall, on the
west side, formed no inconsiderable feature in the
close, where, about 1673, the first coffee-house
established in the city was opened.
The Edinburgh goldsmiths of the olden time
were deemed a superior class of tradesmen, and
were wont to appear in public with cocked hats,
scarlet cloaks, and gold-mounted canes, as men of
undoubted consideration. The father of John
Law of Lauriston, the famous financial projector,
was the son of a goldsmith in Edinburgh, where
he was born in April, 1671 ; but by far the most
famous of all the craft in the old Parliament Close
was George Heriot.
Down to the year 1780, says a historian, perhaps
there was not a goldsmith in Edinburgh who did
not condescend to manual labour. In their shops
every one of them might have been found busy
with some light work, and generally in a very plain
dress, yet ever ready to serve a customer, politely
and readily. The whole plate shops of the city
being collected in or near the Parliament Close,
thither it was that, till the close of the eighteenth
century, country couples resorted-the bride to get
her bed and table napery and trousseau ; there, too,
were got the nuptial ring, and ?? the silver spoons,?
and, as the goldsmiths of the city then kept scarcely

... Close. CHAPTER XIX. THE PARLIAMENT CLOSE. Probable Extinction of the Court of Session-Memorabilia of ...

Book 1 p. 174
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 313
prayers, to lead them to the balm that is in Gilead, and the Physician who is
there. The widow and the fatherless were his peculiar care: he sought out
their cause ; and many had occasion to bless him for the seasonable soothing
and relief, both temporal and spiritual, which they received through his
instrumentality,
He was a member, and from time to time in the direction, of almost every
charitable institution in Edinburgh, but took a more especial and active interest
in those of them connected with the religious instruction of the rising generation
and the more extensive diffusion of the knowledge and influence of Gospel truth,
whether at home or abroad. It need scarcely now be added that Mr. Dickson
was conscientiously and firmly attached to the principles, and approved, in
general, of the measures adopted by what is called tho popular party in the
Church. But it may be right to mention, that besides, in earlier life, taking
no small share in the discussions connected with the questions about patronage
and Popery, his first sentiments and convictions respecting both of which he
retained till the close of life, he was one of the small majority in the General
Assembly who voted against receiving the explanation of Dr. M‘Gill of Ayr, as
a satisfactory recantation of the heresy with which he had been charged.’ On
two several occasions, also, viz. the settlements of Biggar and Larbert, he actually
braved the highest censure of the ecclesiastical courts, rather than surrender
the dictates of his conscience to what he had thought their time-serving policy
and unconstitutional decisions.
In domestic and private life, Mr. Dickson was all that a Christian husband,
and father, and friend and companion, could be wished to be. Tender, affectionate,
kind, habitually cheerful, yet always dignified, there was a charm in his
manner, arising from the natural warmth of his heart, hallowed by genuine
religious feeling, which not only endeared him to those with whom he was more
intimate, but irresistibly commanded the respect and esteem of all with whom
he became but partially acquainted in the intercourse of social life.
After a
very painful, though not very lengthened illness-during which not a murmur
of impatience was heard from him, but, on the contrary, the constant language
of submissive resignation, and peaceful waiting for his departing to be with
Christhe calmly entered into his rest about midnight on the 3d of August
1820, in the sixty-seventh year of his age, and forty-fourth of his ministry.
His surviving family were his eldest son, the Rev. Dr. Dickson, one of the
ministers of St. Cuthbert’s ; one married, and two unmarried daughters ; and
James Wardrobe Dickson, Esq., Sheriff-Substitute of the Falkirk district of
Stirlingshire.
And, as he lived, so he died in the faith and hope of the Gospel.
-
The heresy of Dr. M‘Gill occasioned great excitement at the time ; and the satirical poem of
“The Kirk’s Alarm,” by Burns, has given the affair a celebrity likely to last as long as the fame of
the bard himself.
VOL. 11. 2 s

... SKETCHES. 313 prayers, to lead them to the balm that is in Gilead, and the Physician who is there. ...

Book 9 p. 416
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 455
his jurisdiction. It was at that time customary to present the Dean of Guild,
on the expiry of his term of office, with the sum of fifty guineas as a gratuity ;
but, on the motion of Sir John Marjoribanks, the sum was doubled to Mr.
Johnston ; sq much had he acquitted himself to the satisfaction of the Council.
In all public affairs Bailie Johnston took a lively interest. To his good taste
and enterprise the inhabitants are indebted for the improvements on the Calton
Hill--now comparatively easy of ascent-and one of the most delightful resorts
in this picturesque city. The promenade of the Meadows, too, owes much to
his exertions ; and amongst other public services of the Bailie, it deserves to
be mentioned that he had the merit of originating the Society for the Suppression
of Mendicity. He was for many years treasurer of the Trinity Hospital, and
displayed great zeal in the management of that charity, as well as of others
connected with the city. He was treasurer to the great Waterloo Fund for
Scotland; succeeded his uncle as honorary Secretary to the Asylum for the
Blind; and was one of the Parliamentary Commissioners for finishing the
buildings of the University ; and also for the erection of the Regent Eridge.
Bailie Johnston continued in business until the year 1831, when he retired
in favour of Mr. Russell, his son-in-law. Latterly, in consequence of declining
health, he was almost closely confined to his own house. On occasion of a
dinner given to Sir James Spittal, Knight, by the Society of High Constables,
the following card of apology was transmitted to the Secretary :-
“Dear Sir-From the condition of my health at present, I cannot dine from home. I
regret this on account of the dinner which is to be given to Sir James Spittal, whose conduct
has my admiration, and I hope you will tell him so. We began public life together in the
Society of High Constables, and afterwards scrvcd in the Magistracy of olden times. All was
pleasant and smooth-no jarring words-no angry feelings arose during a long life, which still
continues-both adhering to their own views in public matters. I wish the Society and the
company all happiness.--I remain, etc.
Dr. Gordon, on
the Sunday after the funeral, concluded his discourse with a very appropriate
character of the deceased. He died at his house, 27 St. James’ Square, on the
4th April 1838. He married Miss Christie, from Stirlingshire, by whom he
had six children, three of whom died in early life.’
“ Ro. JOHNSTON.”
Mr. Johnston was one of the elders in the High Church.
NO. CCCXXIII.
ROBERT SYM, ESQ.,
WRITER TO THE SIGNEI’.
THIS worthy octogenarian, in his eighty-seventh year (at the time of this publication),
was in his day considered one of the handsomest men of Modern Athens.
Hia eldest daughter was married to Wfiam Henry Brown, Esq., of Ashly, china and glass
manufacturer ; the second to Mr. Rwell, his successor in business ; and the third to Jam- Dallas,
Esq., wine merchant in Canada.

... SKETCHES. 455 his jurisdiction. It was at that time customary to present the Dean of Guild, on the ...

Book 9 p. 607
(Score 0.83)

[-wade. THE MELVILLES..
/
LASSWADE CnuKCH, 1773. (Afdw an Etching by Yohn Clerk of E(din.1
CHAPTER XLIII.
THE ENVIRONS OF EDINBURGH-(ccmclz&d).
Melville Castle and the Melvilles-The Viscounts Melvil1::-Sheriffnall-Newton-Monkton-Stonyhill-" The Wicked Colonel Charteris "-
New Hailes-The Stair Obelisk-Lord Hailes-His Death.
MELVILLE CASTLE stands on the left bank of the
North Esk, about five furlongs eastward of Lasswade,
and was built by the first Viscount Melville,
replacing a fortress of almost unknown antiquity,
about the end of the last century. It is a splendid
mansion, with circular towers, exhibiting much
architectural elegance, and surrounded by a finelywooded
park, which excited the admiration of
George IV.
Unauthenticated tradition states that the ancient
castle of Melville was a residence of David Rizzio,
and as such, was, of course, visited occasionally by
Queen Mary; but it had an antiquity much more
remote.
It is alleged that the first Melville ever known
'in Scotland was a Hungarian of that name, who
accompanied Queen 'Margaret to Scotland, where
he obtained from Malcolm 111. a grant of land
in hiidlothian, and where he settled, gave his surname
to his castle, and became progenitor of all
the Melvilles in Scotland. Such is the story told
by Sir Robert Douglas, on the authority of Leslie,
143
Mackenzie, Martin, and Fordun ; but it is much
more probable that the family is of French origin.
Be all that as it may, the family began to be
prominent in Scotland soon after the reign of
Malcolm 111.
Galfrid de Melville of Meldle Castle, in
Lothian, witnessed many charters of Malcolm IV.,
bestowing pious donations on the abbeys of Holyrood,
Newbattle, and Dunfermline, before 1165, in
which year that monarch died.
He also appears (1153-1165) as Vicecomes de
CasieZZo Pzd'Eamm, in the register of St. Marie
of Newbattle. He witnessed two charters of
William the Lion to the abbey of Cambuskenneth,
and made a gift of the parish church of
Melville (which, probably, he built) to the monastery
of Dunfermline, in presence of Hugh, Bishop
of St. Andrews, previously chaplain to King
William, and who died in 1187.
Galfrid of Melville left four sons-Sir Gregory,
his successor, Philip, Walter, and Waren. Of the
last nothing is known, but the other three founded

... THE MELVILLES.. / LASSWADE CnuKCH, 1773. (Afdw an Etching by Yohn Clerk of E(din.1 CHAPTER XLIII. THE ...

Book 6 p. 361
(Score 0.83)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 413
accordingly, not a few pleasantries were indulged in at the expense of the youthful
Principal.’ Time, however, altered the character of the arrangement.
Fortunately the Professors of this University possess nothing of the undesirable
privilege of patronage, yet they cannot but look with much interest on
the choice which the patrons are from time to time called upon to make in
filling up vacancies in their fraternity; and their opinions of the candidates
when expressed, as they generally are, go far to sway that choice. In this indirect
manner, Principal Baird was always observed to act purely for the good
of the institution-sometimes very happily for the encouragement of merit,
and with great credit to his own courage and discernment. Of this description
was the part he took in recommending Dr. Murray to the Chair of Oriental
Languages. The wondrous attainments of that scholar were in the strongest
contrast to almost everything in his early lot; and, though such a character
has within itself a strong principle of ascent in society, there is always much
honour due to the befriending hand. Principal Baird‘s exertions in this matter
are thus alluded to by the late Sir Henry Moncreiff :-
‘‘ It would be unjust not to mention, with the respect which it deserves, that, in his election
to the Professorship, Dr. Murray was most particularly indebted to Dr. Baird, the Principal of
the University. He had been uniformly his most zealous friend from his first appearpce in
Edinburgh ; and, down to the period of his election aa a professor, seems not to have lost any
opportunity of assisting and befriending him. On this occasion he exerted himself most
effectually to render his election secure ; and did so, from his conviction of his peculiar qualifications,
in opposition both to his personal and his party friends, with a firmness and consistency
which certainly did him honour with all impartial men.
“Dr. Murray was not a man to forget his obligations to any one individual to whom he had
been indebted, and least of all to forget what he owed to Dr. Baird, who had so long and so
effectually patronised him. ”
The Senatus Acadeinicus of the University is known to number among its
offices the duty of maintaining College discipline. It is a duty seldom requisite
in its severer aspect. There is, however, one instance of academic authority,
which Principal Baird was called upon to exercise, and which is yet remembered
in consequence of the distinction of the parties concerned. The offence, we
believe, consisted in the circumstance of sending a challenge to one of the
Professors. The parties summoned before the Senate to answer for this
misdemeanour were Lord Henry Petty (afterwards Marquis of Landsdowne),
the late Francis Horner, M.P., and Mr. (afterwards Lord) Brougham. The last
only appeared ; and the rebuke was at once so administered and so received,
that a friendship ensued which was kept up ever afterwards betwixt the parties.
The Principal was of course not aware of the future distinction to be attained
by the personage so leniently reproved; but he knew, even then, that the
youth was shaping himself after antiquity, and might yet be “un hornme de
Plutarch. ”
Dr, Baird found leisure to employ himself much in the direction of the
1 Dr. Baird had married a daughter of Provost Elder, who consequently deemed it right to exert
his influence in favour of one so nearly related to him. Hence the playful allusion of the artist-
“ The Elder shall serve the younger. ”

... SKETCHES. 413 accordingly, not a few pleasantries were indulged in at the expense of the ...

Book 9 p. 552
(Score 0.82)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 331
only.’ The truth is, that in those days the practice of midwifery was almost
solely confined to that sex, as it was only in difficult cases that the assistance of
male practitioners was called in ; and hence it very frequently happened that the
labour was found to be too far advanced to admit of their aid being of material
service, and thus from want of skill, the lives of many mothers and children
were lost. The public owe it to the strenuous exertions of Dr. Young (the first
Professor of Midwifery in the College of Edinburgh), and of the subject of this
memoir, that so few fatal cases occur in this way, in the metropolitan districts of
. Scotland. Both of these gentlemen were indefatigable in their efforts to impress
upon the public the necessity and advantages of all who practised midwifery, both
male and female, being regularly instructed in the art. In their days they had
very formidable prejudices to encounter. They had not only to contend with
the gross ignorance of those who were in established practice, and whose interests
were so nearly related to the continuance of the system ; but such was the state
of public feeling, that there were many who pretended to the name of philosophers,
who encouraged the prejudice. The principal argument upon which
they insisted, which happens not to be fact in all cases, was, that nature is the
proper midwife. This, combined with certain fastidious notions of delicacy,
had the effect of confining the obstetrical art to females. But such has been
the gradual improvement of the age in which we live, that we have the highest
authority (even that of the present excellent Professor in the University of
Edinburgh) for affirming that the public conviction of the utility of the art is
so great, that there is now hardly a parish of Scotland the midwife of which
has not been regularly taught ; and it may with truth be added, that the propriety
and advantage of males practising as accoucheurs is now so generally
admitted, as to make it very probable that the employment of females in midwifery
may in time be entirely superseded. In three of the four Universities
of Scotland there are Professors of Midwifery, viz., in Glasgow, Marischal College,
and in Edinburgh, in which city there was established, in 1791, a
Lying-in Hospital,’ under the more immediate patronage of the magistrates,
the Lord Provost being President, and the Professor of Midwifery Ordinary
Physician.
The prefixed Plate contains a striking likeness of the late DR. ALEXANDER
HAMILTONT. his gentleman was born in 1739 at Fordoun, near Montrose,
where his father, who had been a surgeon in the army during Queen Anne’s
wars, was established as a medical practitioner. He came to Edinburgh about the
year 1755, as assistant to Mr. John Straiton, a surgeon then in extensive
practice ; and on that gentleman’s death, in 1762, he was urged by a number of
respectable families to settle in Edinburgh. He accordingly, on application,
was admitted a member of the College of Surgeons in that city, for the Royal
College was not incorporated until 1578. Of an active and bustling disposition,
After him Mr. Robert Smith taught the same class for seventeen yeam.
and, on the anniversary of its institution, used to dine aunually with the Professor.
’ The Earl of Leven and Melville took a very active part in getting this Hospital established ;

... SKETCHES. 331 only.’ The truth is, that in those days the practice of midwifery was almost solely ...

Book 8 p. 464
(Score 0.82)

188 EIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
manners ; and one or two others are supposed to glide around the door of the
Guard-House, assigned to them at the Luckenbooths, when their ancient refuge
in the High Street was laid low. But the faith of manuscripts bequeathed to
friends and executors is so uncertain, that the narrative containing these frail
memorials of the Old Town Guard of Edinburgh, who, with their grim and
valiant corporal, John Dhu (the fiercest looking fellow I ever saw), were in my
boyhood, the alternate terror and derision of the petulant brood of the High
School, may perhaps only come to light when all memory of the institution has
faded away, and then serve as an illustration of Kay’s Cakztures, who has preserved
the features of some of their heroes.”
Towards the close of last century several reductions had taken place in the
number of the Guard; and, in 1805, when the New Police Bill for Edinburgh
came into operation, the corps was entirely broken up. At the same time, however,
partly from reluctance to do away all at once with so venerable a municipal
force, and by way of employing, instead of pensioning off, some of the old
hands, a new corps, consisting of two sergeants, two corporals, two drummers,
and thirty privates, was formed from the wreck of the former. Of this new
City Guard, as it was called, the subject of our sketch, Mr. James Burnet-the
senior Captain-was appointed to the command, and was the last who held the
situation.
CAPTAINB URNETw as a native of East-Lothian. He was one of the Captains
of the Guard who had not previously been in the army ; and if we except his
experience as a member of the First Regiment of Edinburgh Volunteers, may be
supposed to have been a novice in military matters. Previous to his appointment,
he kept a grocer’s shop at the head of the Fleshmarket Close.
The personal appearance of Mr. Burnet is well delineated in the Portrait.
He was a man of great bulk ; and when in his best days, weighed upwards of
nineteen stone. He was, nevertheless, a person of considerable activity, and of
much spirit, as will appear from the following instance. Along with one or two
gentlemen, he was one summer day cooling himself with a meridian draught in
a well-known tavern, when the late Mr. James Laing, Deputy City Clerk, who
was one of the party, took a bet with the Captain that he would not walk to
the top of Arthur’s Seat, from the base of the hill, within a quarter of an
hour, Mr. Eurnet at once agreed to the wager ; and Mr. Smellie, who happened
to be the lightest and most active of the company, was appointed to proceed
with the pedestrian in the capacity of umpire. The task, it must be admitted
by all who know anything of the locality, was an amazing one for a person of
nineteen stone on a hot summer day! The Captain courageously set about
his arduous undertaking, steering his way by St. Anthony’s Well, up the
ravine. But to describe his progress, as he literally melted and broiled under
the rays of the pitiless sun, would require the graphic pen of a Pindar. Never
did “ fodgel wight or rosy priest ” perform such a penance. When he reached
the most difficult part of his jonrney, the Captain looked as if about to give up

... EIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. manners ; and one or two others are supposed to glide around the door of ...

Book 9 p. 252
(Score 0.82)

332 OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [1745-
General Preston saluted with cannon the officers
of State who returned to Edinburgh on the 13th
November, and hauled down his colours, which had
been flying since the 16th of September. Guest then
assumed the command, and was nobly rewarded,
while Preston was consigned to neglect, and the
humble memorial of his long service was laid in
vain before the Duke of Cumberland. Thus he
reaped no advantage from his loyal adherence to
confined in damp vaults, and treated by the imtated
soldiers with every indignity and opprobrium.
To these were soon added a multitude of prisoners
of all ranks, belonging to the regiments of Buckley,
Berwick, and Clare, of the Irish Brigade in the
French service, captured by the Mi&~ord Haven
(40 guns), on board the Luis XK, off Montrose.
On the 9th December, Lord John Drummond, en
route to join the Prince in England, marched
THE WEIGH-HOUSE
(From a Drawk~ ay Storcr, #ubZished in 1820.)
the House of Hanover, whose policy it was then to
slight the Scots in every way.
By a letter from the Lord President to the
Marquis of Tweeddale (the last Scottish Secretary
of State), we learn that at this crisis bank notes had
ceased to be current, that all coin was locked up,
?so that the man of best credit in this country
cannot command a shilling;? that bills on Edinburgh
or London were of no value ; and that bills
drawn for the subsistence of the Earl of Loudon?s
regiment had been returned protested.
On the departure of the Prince the Castle was
crowded with those persons who had fallen under
the suspicion of Government ; among these were
-Alexander Earl of Kellie, and upwards of sixty
gentlemen, all of whom were heavily ironed, closely
through Edinburgh, with 800 men and a train of
18-pounders. He sent a drummer to the Castle
to effect an exchange of these prisoners, without
avail; and sixteen who were proved to have been
deserters from our army in Flanders were thrown
into the Castle pit, from whence four were taken
to the gallows in the Grassmarket. In the same
month young Macdonald of Kinlochmoidart, aidedecamp
to the Prince, was treacherously captured
in the night, near Lesmahago, by the Reverend
Mr. Linning, who, as the price of his blood,
received the incumbency of that parish, acccrding
to ? Forbes?s Memoirs ? ; and from the Castle he
was taken to Carlisle, where he was hanged, drawn,
and quartered.
About the end of November, when the High

... OLD AND NEW EDINBURGH. [1745- General Preston saluted with cannon the officers of State who returned to ...

Book 2 p. 332
(Score 0.82)

118 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
No, LVI.
CAPTAIN GEORGE GORDON,
CAPTAIN GEORGE ROBERTSON, AND
JOHN GRIEVE, ESQ.,
LORD PROVOST OF EDINBURGH.
CAPTAIN GORDOK, the first figure in the Print, is repre nted as in ttendance
on the Lord Provost. He was formerly an officer of the Scottish
Brigade’ in the service of Holland, and was appointed to his situation as
Captain in the Town Guard, on the death of Captain Robertson in 1787. He
lived in Bell’s Wynd, High Street, and was somewhat remarkable for his
forenoon or meridian potations, an indulgence by no means uncommon in his
day. He died on the 25th September 1803.
CAPTAIN ROBERTSON, who is in the attitude of receiving instructions
from the Lord Provost, has already been noticed as one of “ the Three Captains
of Pilate’s Guard,” No. XV.
JOHN GRIEVE, ESQ., the centre figure of this triumvirate, was a
merchant in the Royal Exchange, and held the office of Lord Provost in the
years 1782-3 and again in 1786-7. He entered the Town Council so early as
1765, was treasurer in 1’769, and Dean of Guild in 1778-9. Mr. Grieve possessed
a great deal of natural sagacity, to which he entirely owed his success in business,
The Scottish Brigade in Holland were a body of about six battalions, originally sent for the
purpose of assisting the Republic. They continued to be supplied with recruits from Scotland, and
kept in an effective state ; but under one pretence or other they were detained so long in the service
of the Dutch that it almost came to be a matter of dispute whether there existed a right to recall
them. In 1763 the chiefs or officers of the regiment addressed a strong remonstrance to the British
Secretary at War, expressing a desire to be removed from the provinces on account of indifferent
usage ; but, either from inability or neglect, their remonstrance was not sufficiently attended to. In
1779, they again made offer of their services to the British Government, being unwilling to loiter
away their time in garrison towns, “while the enemies of their country were uniting against her ; ”
but the States of the United Provinces resolved that the Scotch Brigade should, on and after the
1st of January 1783, be incorporated with the Dutch troops, and in every way similarly situated.
At that time the Scotch Brigade had been above 200 years in the service of the States, and in the
numeiwus battles and sieges in which they had been engaged they never lost a single colour, having
on all occasions defended them with the utmost bravery. “At Bergen-op-Zoom, in 1747, in particular,
General Marjoribank‘s regiment consisted of 850 rank and file, of which only 220 survived the fatal
storm of the place ; but these brave handful of men, although many of them were wounded, cut their
way through the grenadiers of France, and carried off their colours in triumph into the lines of the
Allied army of Steebergen.” On this conjunction of the Scotch Brigade with the Dutch regiments,
mauy of the officers refusing to subscribe the new oaths of allegiance, returned to their native country.

... BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. No, LVI. CAPTAIN GEORGE GORDON, CAPTAIN GEORGE ROBERTSON, AND JOHN GRIEVE, ...

Book 8 p. 172
(Score 0.82)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 207
strength of mind, as well as one of the best hearts and keenest wits that I have
ever met with,” etc.-Burns’ Vorh, Letter 56.
Mr. Smellie was one of the principal writers in the Edinburgh Magazine and
Review-a work which commenced in 1773, and was conducted for some years
with great spirit and much display of talent. It would assuredly have
succeeded, had its management been committed entirely to the calm, judicious,
and conciliatory control of Mr. Smellie. But owing to the harsh irritability of
temper, and the severe and almost indiscriminate satire, in which Dr. Gilbert
Stuart, the principal editor, indulged, several of the reviews which appeared in
that periodical gave great offence to many leading characters of the day ; the
consequence of which was such a diminution in the sale of the work as to render
it necessary to discontinue it altogether. This took place in August 1776,
after the publication of forty-seven numbers, forming five octavo volumes. Had
the work been only conducted upon the principles developed in the prospectus,
it would have had few rivals and fewer superiors.
Mr. Smellie was likewise editor of the first edition of the EncycZopmdia
Britannica, three volumes, quarto, 1771. The whole plan was arranged, and
all the principal articles were written or compiled by him. He also wrote a great
number of pamphlets on various subjects, among which may be particularised
his Address on thz Nature, Pouiers, and Privileges of Juiies, published in 1784.
It is an admirable treatise, and ought to be carefully studied by every true
friend to the Constitution, especially by such as have occasion to act as
jurymen. It may be remarked that this pamphlet inculcated those doctrines
which have been since recognised as English law in Mr. Fox’s celebrated Bill
on the subject of libels. The late Honourable Thomas Erskine (afterwards
Lord Chancellor), in his defence of the Dean of St. Asaph for a libel, paid Mr.
Smellie a very high compliment for this defence of the rights of juries.
Such was the high character of Mr. Smellie as an author, that when the first
volume of his Philosophy of Natural History was announced as preparing for
the press, the late Mr. C. Elliot made him an offer of one thousand guineas
for the copyright, and fifty guineas for every subsequent edition, besides the
employment of printing it. This was the largest sum ever previously given,
at least in Edinburgh, for the literary property of a single quarto volume of
similar extent, and evinced both the liberality of the bookseller and the
high estimation in which the fame and talents of the author were held.
It was, besides, an odd volume, being the first of the work. It is remarkable
that this bargain was finally concluded before a single page of the book was
written.
In his translation of Buffon (9 volumes 8vo), Mr. Smellie introduced many
original notes, observations, and illustrations of great importanoe, pointing out
particular passages and opinions in which he differed from his author, and
furnishing many new facts and reasonings. The Count de Buffon, as appears
from his own letters to Mr. Smellie on the occasion, was highly pleased with
this translation, of which a considerable number of editions were published.

... SKETCHES. 207 strength of mind, as well as one of the best hearts and keenest wits that I have ever ...

Book 8 p. 292
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 209
but the lectures of Mr. Smellie, under the auspices of the Antiquarian Society,
is a new discouragement which I did not expect.” This discontent was communicated
to the Senatus Academicus, and, through that respectable body, an
unexpected opposition arose when the Society of Antiquaries transmitted a
petition to the King praying for a charter. The Curators of the Advocates’
Library likewise objected to the grant, under the idea that the institution of
the Society might prove injurious to their magnificent Library, by intercepting
ancient manuscripts and monuments illustrative of Scottish history and antiquities,
which would be more useful if collected into one repository. All this
opposition, however, proved of no avail. Much to the honour of the late Lord
Melville-who was at that time Lord Advocate for Scotland-his lordship
signified, by a note to the Secretary of the Society, that he saw no reason for
refusing the prayer of the petition, and at the same time transmitted the draft
of such a charter as he considered was proper to be granted. In consequence,
therefore, of his lordship’s favourable interposition, the royal warrant, in which
his Majesty was pleased voluntarily to declare himself patron of the Society,
passed the Privy Seal next day. As soon as it was received in Edinburgh, a
charter was extended under the Great Seal. The gentlemen of this public
office, sensible of the many advantages likely to accrue from the establishment
of the Society, generously refused to accept their accustomed fees; and the
royal charter, which is dated the 29th March, was finally ratified, by passing
through all the customary forms, on the 5th and 6th of May 1783.
During the time Mr. Smellie attended the class of Botany in the University,
the Professor, Dr. Hope, having met with an accident which confined him to the
house for a long time, requested Mr. Smellie, of whose knowledge and abilities
he was highly sensible, to carry on his lectures during his necessary absence.
This was done by Mr. Smellie for a considerable time-(his widow has stated
during six weeks)-to the entire satisfaction of his fellow-students.
Mr. Smellie was about the middle size, and had been in his youth wellproportioned
and active ; but, when rather past the middle of life, he acquired
a sort of lounging gait, and had become careless and somewhat slovenly in his
dress and appearance. These peculiarities are well described in the following
lines, produced by Burns at the meeting of the Crochallan club alluded to in
our notice of Lord Newton :-
“ To Crochallan came,
The old cocked hat, the brown surtout the aame :
His bristling beard just rising in its might,
( ’Twsa four long nights and day8 to shaving-night) ;
His uncombed grisly locks, wild-staring, thatched
A head for thought profound and clear unmatched :
And, though his caustic wit waa biting rude,
His heart waa warm, benevolent, and good.”
In grave and philosophical discourse Mr. Smellie was clear, candid, and
communicative, as well as thoroughly informed, He never withheld his judg-
2E

... SKETCHES. 209 but the lectures of Mr. Smellie, under the auspices of the Antiquarian Society, is a ...

Book 8 p. 294
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CONTENTS. B
CHAPTER XV.
. THE CHURCH OF ST. GILES. PAGE
SL Giles?s Church-The Patron Saint-Its Wgh and early Norman style-The Renovation of xEzg-History of the StrucsPmcession of
the Saint?s Relics-The Preston Relic-The Chapel of the Duke of Albany-Funeral of the Regent Morray-The ?Gude Regent?s
Aisle?-The Assembly Aisle-Dispute between James VI. and the Church Part-Departure of James VI.-Haddo?s Hole-The
Napier Tomb-The Spire and Iantun--Clak and Bells-The Krames-Restoration of 1878 . . . . . . . 1.38 . .
CHAPTEK XVI.
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF ST. GILES?S.
St Giles?s Churchyard-The Maison Dieu-The Clam-shell Turnpike-The Grave of Knox-The City C-The Summons of Pint-
Executions : Kirkaldy, Gilderoy, and othe-The Caddies-The Dyvours Stane-The LnckenboobThe Auld Kirk Style-Byre?s
Lodging--Lord Coaktoun?s Wig-Allan Ramsay?s Library and ?? Creech?s Land?-The Edinburgh Halfpenny . . . . . 1 4
f .
CHAPTEK XVII.
? THE PARLIAMEXT HOUSE.
Site of the Parliament Iiouse-The Parliament Hall-Its fine Roof-Proportions-Its External Aspect of Old-Pictures and Statues-The
Great South Window-The Side Windows-Scots Prisoners of War-General Monk Feasted-A Scene with Gen. DalyeU-The Fire of
17-Riding of the Parliament-The Union-Its due Effects and ultimate good Results-Trial of Covenanters . . . . . 157
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE PARLIAMENT HOUSE (continued).
The Faculty of Advocates-The Wr:ters to the Signet-Solicitors before the Supreme Court-The First Lords of Session-The Law Courts-
The Court of Session: the Outer and Inner HousesXollege of Justice-Supreme Judicature Court-Its Corrupt Nature-How Justice
used to be defatec-Abduction of Lord Dune-Some Notable Senators?of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries: Lord0
Fountainhall, Covington, Monboddo, Kames, Hailes, Gardenstone. Amiston, Balmuto, and Hermand . . . . . , I66
CHAPTER XIX.
THE PARLIAMENT CLOSE.
Probable Extinction of the Court of Scion-Memorabiliaof the Parliament Close?and Square-Goldsmiths of the OldenTime-Gearge Heriot-
HIS Workshop-His Interview with James VI.-Peter Williamson?s Tavern-Royal Exchange-Statueof Charles 11.-Bank of Satha-
The Fire of 17-The Work of Restoration-John Row?s Coffee-house-John?s Coffee-house-SylvesterOtwaFSir W. Forbes?s Bank-
6ir Walter Scott?s Eulogy on Sir Willkm Forks-John Kay?s Print-shopThe Parliament ShirsiJames Sibbald-A Libel Gsc-Fire
in Junz IllatDr. Archibald Pitcairn-lhe ?Greping Office?-Painting of King Charles?s Statue White-Seal of Arnauld Lzmmiua 174
CHAPTER XX.
THE ROYAL EXCHAGGE-THE TRON CHURCH-THE GREAT FIRE OF NOVEMBER, 18%
The Royal Exchange-Laying the Foundation Stone-Description of the Exchanee-The Mysterious Statue-The Council Chamber-
Convention of Rayal Burghs : Constitution thereof, and Powers-Writers? Court-The s? Star and Garter ? Tavern-Sir Walter
Scotth Account of the Scene at Clenheugh?s-Lawyers? High Jinks-The Tron Church-History of the Old Church-The Great Fire
of 18z4-1nddents of the ConAagration-The Ruin9 Undermined-Blown up by Captain Head of the Engioew . . . . 183
CHAPTER XXI.
T H E H I G H S T R E E T .
A Place for Blawling-First Paved and Lighted-The Meal and Flesh Market-State of the Streets-Municipal Regnlations 16th Ccntury-
Tulzies-The Lairds of Airth and Wemyss-The Tweedies of Drumrnelzier-A Montrose Quarrel-The Slaughter of Lord T o r t h d d
-A Brawl in 1705-Attacking a Sedan Chair-Habits in the Seventeenth Century-Abduction of Women and Girls-Sumptuary
Laws against Women . , . . - . . . . . , . . . . . . . . . . . , . 191
CHAPTER XXII.
THE HIGH STREET (continucd).
Thc City in 1598-Fynes Morison on the Manners of the Inhabitants-Tle ?Lord? Provost of Edinburgh-Police of the City-Taylor the
Water Poet-Banquets at the Cross-The hard Case of the Earl of Traquair-A Visit of H-The Quack and his Acrobats-A
Procession of Covenanters-Early Stages and Street Caaches--Salc of a Dancing-girl-Constables appointed in Ip-First Numher of
the Courrmt-The Cnledomian Mercwy-Carting away of the strata of Street Filth-Candition of old Houses . . . . . 198

... B CHAPTER XV. . THE CHURCH OF ST. GILES. PAGE SL Giles?s Church-The Patron Saint-Its Wgh and early ...

Book 2 p. 387
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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. 371
brought him a very considerable sum. This he entered in Stationers’ Hall ;
but as the law then only secured copyrights for seven years, at the end of that
period he had the mortification to find his treatise inserted in the Encyclopda
Rritannica, without permission sought or obtained. Mr. Wright was so much
offended at this appropriation of his property, that he seriously contemplated
bringing the case before the Court of Session ; but he was dissuaded from this
step by his friend Mr. Erskine, who, in his usual strain of pleasantry, told him
“just to wait the expiry of other seven years, and then to retaliate, by printing
the whole of the Encyclopzedia along with his own work !”
A short time prior to his demise Mr. Wright became so much reduced in his
circumstances as to be compelled to apply for relief to the Faculty of Advocates,
from whom he obtained an annuity of &50 per annum. He died in 1813.l
He resided, about the year 1787, in Gavinloch’s Land; and subsequently
removed to the New Assembly Close, also called the Commercial Bank Close.
His lecture-room was at the head of the Old Assembly Close,
No. CX
THE REV. WILLIAM BEAT,
MINISTER OF KILRENNY.
THIS likeness of the Reverend Gentleman was taken from a drawing executed
by himself, and communicated to the artist by Mr. Douglas, one of his friends.
MR. BEAT was long pastor of the parish of Kilrenny, in the county of Fife,
and died at the Manse there on the 2lst December 1797, in the eighty-seventh
year of his age, and fifty-second of his ministry. A funeral sermon was preached
at Kilrenny the Sabbath following by the Rev. Dr. Hill, principal of St. Mary’s
College. The Principal described him to have been most exemplary in his conduct,
and an effective preacher. “ The excellence of his matter, the strength of
his nervous, pointed expression, the bold painting of character in which he
abounded, the richness and variety of his fancy, chastised by a thorough acquaintance
with theology, rendered him a very impressive preacher.” He was beloved
by his parishioners, amongst whom he zealously discharged the duties of pastoral
superintendence, and exercised a fatherly authority, which could alone spring
from the deep interest he took in their welfare.
The late Sheriff Anstruther met Henry Enkme the day after Wtight’s demise‘‘ Well, Harry,
They say he has
“ That is not surprising,” was the rejoinder ; “a8 he had no cawes, he could haw
poor Johny Wright is dead.”
left no effects.”
no ej7ect.s.“
“Is he I ” answered Henry. “He died very poor.

... SKETCHES. 371 brought him a very considerable sum. This he entered in Stationers’ Hall ; but as ...

Book 8 p. 380
(Score 0.81)

Foms StRet.1 THOMAS CHALMERS. 205
of high entranced enthusiasm. But the shape of
the forehead is perhaps the most singular part of
the whole visage ; and indeed it presents a mixture
so very singular, that I should have required some
little time to comprehend the meaning of it. . . .
In the forehead of Dr. Chalmers there is an arch
of imagination, carrying out the summit boldly and
roundly, in a style to which the heads of very few
poets present acything comparable-while over
this again there is a grand apex of veneration and
love, such as might have graced the bust of Plato
himself, and such as in living men I had never
beheld equalled in any but the majestic head of
Canova. The whole is edged with a few crisp
locks, which stand boldly forth and afford a fine
relief to the death-like paleness of those massive
temples.?
He died on the 3rst May, 1847, since when
his Memoirs have been given to the world by Dr.
William Hanna, with his life and labours in
long before he took the great part he did in the
storm of the Disruption :-
?At first sight his face is a coarse one-but a
mysterious kind of meaning breathes from every
part of it, that such as have eyes cannot be long
without discovering. It is very pale, and the
large halfclosed eyelids have a certain drooping
melancholy about them, which interested me very
much, I understood not why. The lips, too, are
singularly pensive in their mode of falling down
at the sides, although there is no want of richness
and vigour in their central fulness of curve. The
upper lip from the nose downwards, is separated by
a very deep line, which
travels in North America followed; but the work
by which he is best known-his pleasant ? I Fragments
of Voyages and Travels, including Anec
dotes of Naval Life,?in three volumes, he published
at Edinburgh in 1831, during his residence in St.
Colme Street where some of his children were
born. I? Patchwork,? a work in three volumes, he
published in England in 1841. He married Margaret,
daughter of Sir John Hunter, Consul-general
in Spain, and died at Portsmouth in 1844, leaving
behind him the reputation of having been a brave
and intelligent officer, a good and benevolent man,
and a faithful friend.
Ainslie Place is an expansion of Great Stuart
Street, midway between Moray Place and Randolph
Crescent. It forms an elegant, spacious. and
symmetrical double crescent, with an ornamental
garden in the centre, and is notable for containing
the houses in which Dugald Stewart and Dean
Ramsay lived and died, namely, Nos. 5 and 23.
Glasgow, his residence in St. Andrews, and his final
removal to Edinburgh, his Visits to England, and
the lively journal he kept of what he saw and did
while in that country.
St. Colme Street, the adjacent continuation of
Albyn Place, is so named from one of the titles of
the Moray family, a member of which was commendator
of Inchcolm in the middle of the 16th
century.
Here No. 8 was the residence of Captain Bad
Hall, R.N., the popular writer on several subjects.
He was the second son of Sir James Hall of Dunglass,
Sart., and Lady Helena Douglas, daughter
af Dunbar, third Earl of

... StRet.1 THOMAS CHALMERS. 205 of high entranced enthusiasm. But the shape of the forehead is perhaps the most ...

Book 4 p. 205
(Score 0.81)

Restalrig.] ST. MARGARET?S WELL. 129
By the south side of what was once an old forest
path when the oaks of Drumsheugh were in all their
glory, there stood St. Margaret?s Well, the entire
edifice of which was removed to the Royal Park,
near Holyrood ; but the pure spring, deemed so
holy as to be the object of pilgrimages in the days
of old, still oozes into the fetid marsh close by.
It was no doubt the source of supply to the
ancient ecclesiastics of the village, and the path
alluded to had become in after times a means of
The structure-for elsewhere it still remains intact
-is octagonal, and entered by a pointed Gothic
doorway, and rises to the height of 4 ft. 6 in. It
is of plain ashlar work, with a stone ledge or seat
running round seven of the sides. From the centre
of the water, which fills the entire floor of the
building, rises a decorated pillar to the same height
as the walls, with grotesque gargoyles, from which
the liquid flows. Above this springs a richly
groined roof, ? presenting, with the ribs that rise
RESTALRIG.
communication between the church there and the
Abbey of Holyrood.
No authentic traces can be found of the history
of this consecrated fountain ; ? but from its name,?
says Billings, ?? it appears to have been dedicated
to the Scottish queen and saint, Margaret, wife of
Malcolm 111.?
In the legend which we have already referred
to in our account of Holyrood, which represents
David I. as being miraculously preserved from the
infuriated white hart, Bellenden records that it
?fled away with gret violence, and evanist in the
same place quhere now springs the Rude Well.?
From its vicinity to the abbey, St. Margaret?s has
been conjectured to be the well referred to.
113
from the corresponding corbels at each of the eight
angles of the building, a singularly rich effect when
illuminated by the reflected light from the water
below.?
When this most picturesque fountain stood in an
unchanged condition by the side of the old winding
path to Restalrig, an ancient elder-tree, With furrowed
and gnarled branches, covered all its grassgrown
top, and a tiny but aged thatched cottage
stood in front of it. Then, too, a mossy bank, rising
out of pleasant meadow land, protected the little
pillared cell; but the inexorable march of modem improvement
came, the old tree and the rustic cottage
were swept away, and the well itselfwas buried under
(See Vol. II., page 311.)
. a hideous station of the North British Railway.

... ST. MARGARET?S WELL. 129 By the south side of what was once an old forest path when the oaks of ...

Book 5 p. 129
(Score 0.81)

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